This one has made You Tube for all the wrong reasons. On Saturday’s Wembley card topped by George Groves-Jamie Cox competing in the WBSS, welterweights Nathan McIntosh and Louis Adolphe met in a battle of prospects. What happened at the end of the very first round simply stunned and sickened each and every fan watching the action.
With mere seconds remaining in the opening round, with the two fighters locked in a clinch, referee Howard Foster clearly called “break” and McIntosh, 14-2(1) dropped his guard and turned away from Adolphe, 7-1(1), who then hauled off with one vicious, illegal right hook to the head that landed flush and sent McIntosh to the canvas, badly hurt.
If this wasn’t bad enough (it was), as paramedics piled into the ring to aid the stricken McIntosh, Adolphe shamelessly ran around the ring celebrating, even jumping on the ropes to salute his “victory.” The decision was swiftly demoted to a disqualification and now The BBB of C will be taking a look at what happened on Saturday night and assessing what punishment Adolphe should receive.
This side of the sport does unfortunately rear its ugly head on occasion, and in rare cases, with a fighter locked in the heat of battle, such actions can perhaps be put down to adrenaline pumping and the fighter in the zone, ready to do anything to win the bout. But this one appeared calculated, as Adolphe clearly heard the break command AND saw his opponent lower his guard.
Saturday’s illegal knockout really is hard to watch, although many fans have tuned in via the internet. Thankfully, McIntosh recovered, being administered oxygen in the ring; regaining his feet to be awarded his win.
So what happens next? Will Adolphe be suspended? Should he be banned? Will McIntosh’s career suffer due to the trauma he suffered on Saturday? If he feels he can continue fighting and if he wishes to take one, a rematch should be offered to the fighter who won via 1st round DQ.
